When I was born, I had umbilical cord wrapped around my neck. I always thought of that moment as my entrance exam to the “School of Hard Knocks”; which I like to think that passed with flying colors. I grew up in a military family with only one working parent. At the time I never realize how much my parents struggled financially, I always just assume that is the way life was. While my father was still in the military we did not have to worry about losing a roof over our head; we only had that concern after my dad was medically discharged from the Army.
For as long as I can remember I had always had to work a little harder and put in a little extra time when it came to academic endeavors. While my dad was in the military, my learning difficulties were blamed on the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck at birth. However, once my father was discharged from the Army; I was finally able to go to the same school for more than one year at a time. Surprisingly with this new stability, my academic ability started improving dramatically. I went from being a special education student to being an honor roll student. Educators started wondering if my learning difficulties derive from not have a stable home and educational environment. After reading the first two chapters of Gladwell’s Outliers, I am curious to what affects my childhood may have had on my educational and career potentials.The 10,000-Hour Rule states that it takes no less than10,000 hours or approximately ten years of deliberate practice to become a master of that skill. …show more content…
Gladwell’s argument for the 10,000-Hour Rule is firmly supported by a study performed in the 1990s by K. Anders Ericsson and two colleagues. Their study monitored how many hours students practiced playing the violin. This study showed that students who put in the most hours deliberately practicing the violin to improve their skill became elite performers. Elite performers had practiced at lease 10,000 hours (Gladwell, 2011, pp. 38-40). It could be easy to dismiss the result of a single studying, involving violinist at a single school. Which is why K. Anders Ericsson and colleagues repeated the same study with pianists. The same results occurred, the pianists that practiced 10,000 hours became elite performers (Gladwell, 2011, p. 39). It is harder to dismiss the findings of two studies. If the results of two studies are not enough to convince you, then thankfully the neurologist Daniel Levitin has compared many studies about 10,000 hours requirement to be a world-class expert. The studies have found “In study after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction writers,ice-skaters, concert pianists, masters criminals, and what have you, this number comes up again and again.” (Gladwell, 2011, p. 40). The first two chapters of Gladwell’s Outliers has made me feel like it is going to take much determination to exceed at my professional and academic goals. Being an adult learner makes me feel like I am a bit behind on working toward the required 10,000 hours to become a world-class expert; thankfully my ambitions will not need that level of expertise to be content. I have become increasingly curious about different factors from childhood and how they could have impacted my life. How many opportunities did I miss out on as a youth because of my family 's
For as long as I can remember I had always had to work a little harder and put in a little extra time when it came to academic endeavors. While my dad was in the military, my learning difficulties were blamed on the umbilical cord wrapped around my neck at birth. However, once my father was discharged from the Army; I was finally able to go to the same school for more than one year at a time. Surprisingly with this new stability, my academic ability started improving dramatically. I went from being a special education student to being an honor roll student. Educators started wondering if my learning difficulties derive from not have a stable home and educational environment. After reading the first two chapters of Gladwell’s Outliers, I am curious to what affects my childhood may have had on my educational and career potentials.The 10,000-Hour Rule states that it takes no less than10,000 hours or approximately ten years of deliberate practice to become a master of that skill. …show more content…
Gladwell’s argument for the 10,000-Hour Rule is firmly supported by a study performed in the 1990s by K. Anders Ericsson and two colleagues. Their study monitored how many hours students practiced playing the violin. This study showed that students who put in the most hours deliberately practicing the violin to improve their skill became elite performers. Elite performers had practiced at lease 10,000 hours (Gladwell, 2011, pp. 38-40). It could be easy to dismiss the result of a single studying, involving violinist at a single school. Which is why K. Anders Ericsson and colleagues repeated the same study with pianists. The same results occurred, the pianists that practiced 10,000 hours became elite performers (Gladwell, 2011, p. 39). It is harder to dismiss the findings of two studies. If the results of two studies are not enough to convince you, then thankfully the neurologist Daniel Levitin has compared many studies about 10,000 hours requirement to be a world-class expert. The studies have found “In study after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction writers,ice-skaters, concert pianists, masters criminals, and what have you, this number comes up again and again.” (Gladwell, 2011, p. 40). The first two chapters of Gladwell’s Outliers has made me feel like it is going to take much determination to exceed at my professional and academic goals. Being an adult learner makes me feel like I am a bit behind on working toward the required 10,000 hours to become a world-class expert; thankfully my ambitions will not need that level of expertise to be content. I have become increasingly curious about different factors from childhood and how they could have impacted my life. How many opportunities did I miss out on as a youth because of my family 's